Police, troopers team up to keep roads safe

Local law enforcement agencies are hoping a mid-week Fourth of July will cut down on the number of people drinking and driving.

The thought of heading to work on Thursday with a hangover may have some people scaling back on their consumption.

But just to be safe there will be a large number of officers from multiple law enforcement agencies working on a new DUI program called "Borderless Enforcement."

AAA estimates 40 million people will pile in the car and drive more than 50 miles in search of Fourth of July fun. All those road trips increase our chances of tangling with a drunk driver.

Law enforcement officers participated in taking a field sobriety refresher course in Coeur d' Alene last week. Off duty firefighters volunteered to get liquored up and then serve as test subjects. When the drinker had blood alcohol levels of .40 the men said they would have reservations about driving.

But at .06 and .08 their brains had stopped sending them those warning signals. That's why troopers say you need find a safe way home before you start drinking.

"There's not question about because like you said it does lower your ability to make a rational thought and if you make those decisions after you've been drinking that could obviously be the wrong decision," Trooper Troy Briggs with the Washington State Patrol said.

The agencies joining this week's borderless enforcement stretch from Spokane all the way to Boundary County in North Idaho.

No matter where you're enjoying the Fourth of July, it's just not worth the risk to drink and drive.